5 Things Customers Want to See on Your Local Business Website

Of course, figuring out what customers want to see on your website isn’t always straightforward.

The more research you do into your target audience, the better you can tailor your site to their preferences — and the more leads you’ll get. However, there are a few basic principles of web design that apply to SMBs in every industry. Let’s take a look at what the average consumer — aka your target customers — are likely looking for.

1. What Your Business Offers

It may seem obvious, but visitors to your website want to know what you do. Because you’re working in your field day after day, it can be easy to assume consumers have more knowledge of your business than they actually do.

Ultimately, the more you can  explain your products or services — and why your audience needs them – the better.

Your homepage should outline the basics of what your business offers. Then, you can go into more detail on individual product or service pages. For instance, an auto body shop can have individual pages discussing each of the most common repairs it offers, while a restaurant can provide online breakfast, lunch and dinner menus.

Of course, it’s not enough to simply list your products or services. You need to emphasize what makes them unique, and what makes you the best choice (before that site visitor starts shopping around for other providers). Draw attention to the biggest benefits a customer can experience when they choose your business.

Do you have any special promotions or coupons? Highlight these deals on your homepage.

Was your business voted best in the local area five years in a row? Don’t hesitate to brag about that!

Customers want to know what makes your business special, so make sure they can get that answer right away on your homepage.

2. Easy Navigation

No matter how informative your website is, customers aren’t likely to stay on it if it’s difficult to navigate. If a person goes to your site with a specific question in mind and they can’t quickly find the answer, chances are they’ll end up closing the browser window out of frustration (or searching for, and potentially finding, one of your competitors) To keep visitors on your site and avoid driving them to the competition, it’s critical to have an intuitive layout.

With an expertly crafted Hibu Smart Site, we’ll make sure your  visitors can get where they want to be in seconds. By making sure your site is organized in a logical way — with dedicated pages for your core products and/or services — you’ll have a website that makes it easy for your customers to find the information they’re looking for.

3. Your Contact Information

Consumers naturally favor businesses that seem trustworthy and offer clear communication. Whether they want to schedule a service or ask a question about your policies, they need to be able to easily reach a member of your team. Having basic information like your physical address, phone number, and email address in an easily accessible location (such as the footer of every page) is the bare minimum. Including a separate contact page is even better.

The more modes of communication your business offers, the better. According to Zendesk, three out of four customers state that a negative interaction with a business can ruin their day. Failure to reach a representative the way the consumer wants — whether that’s by phone, email, chat or social media message – can be a highly frustrating experience that can easily drive customers away, so it’s essential to give visitors to your site multiple options. A contact form can be an excellent way to let customers get in touch without waiting for a representative to pick up the phone..

Even if a customer never needs to y get in touch with your team, simply having these options front and center on your website can go a long way in building trust. When a customer can instantly verify that they can reach you if they ever need to, you’ll remove one of the first sales barriers in their customer journey.

4. Expertise in Your Industry

Customers are likely to feel more confident choosing your business if you can establish yourself as an industry authority. When a user starts looking for a provider, they’ll want to turn to the experts. Maintaining a blog and regularly updating it with informative and engaging posts will let visitors know that you have the knowledge and expertise to meet their needs. According to DemandSage, 70% of people prefer to learn about a company by visiting their blog. These blogs can allow you to flex your knowledge and show customers why they should choose your business over your competitors.

As an added benefit, posting blogs provides an opportunity to strategically optimize your site for search engines. With Hibu Local Ranking, your blog pages will include keyword-rich content that can help your site climb to the top of search results pages. This way, your business can attract a wider audience that may have never discovered your website otherwise.

5. A Positive Reputation

Finally, it’s important to remember that customers won’t just take your word for what makes your business outstanding — they want to see additional sources that can vouch for you. One of the simplest ways to emphasize your reputation is to have dedicated pages for reviews and testimonials. When visitors see others leave positive feedback for your business, they’ll be more inclined to trust you. In fact, according to a Power Reviews survey, 98% of consumers say that online reviews play a critical role in their purchasing decisions.

You can also encourage customers to leave reviews on third-party platforms like Facebook, Google Business Profile and Yelp. Hibu Reviews and Hibu Assistant make it even easier for you to collect feedback from satisfied customers to boost your online reputation.

In addition to showcasing built-in reviews and testimonials, it’s helpful to have clearly visible links to any social media profiles you have. This way, visitors who want to do a deep dive into your business can check you out on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Social media is also a great way to demonstrate your commitment to engaging with customers. Replying to comments shows customers that you value their opinions and will make an effort to ensure their satisfaction.

Of course, managing your online reputation is far from a simple process. Reaching out to customers who express negative experiences is critical to prevent your reputation from taking a downward spiral, but it’s easy for a bad review or two to slip through the cracks. Staying on top of everything is much easier with the assistance of Hibu Reputation, which enables you to easily see and respond to all your online listings and reviews.

Create a Website That Will Turn Visitors Into New Customers

A lot of work goes into building an effective website, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed trying to balance all of the necessary factors. Luckily, you don’t have to go it alone. Hibu is happy to be your qualified partner throughout every step of the process so you can focus on what really matters: running your business.

Our advanced Hibu Smart Site technology makes it easy build you a website that delivers the results you need. With our integrated digital marketing solutions, you can see more traffic to your site and keep visitors from clicking away. 

To learn more, contact us today at 877-237-6120 or request your no-obligation consultation.